5 Great Little Pocket Rockets

If there's a ringer in this field, it's the Cobalt SS, developed by GM engineer and champion race driver John Heinricy, who took the Cobalt SS to the Nurburgring and set the lap record for compact front-wheel-drive cars.

Using another 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder with direct injection, it matches the MAZDASPEED3 with 260 horsepower, while making 260 pound-feet of torque at a down-low 2000 rpm. Its gearbox is only a 5-speed, but it handles better and stops better, on sticky tires and big Brembos. Plus the wing looks cool in the rearview mirror.

And it's got at least two features you just don't expect from a car at this price. Launch control, like on the new Porsche 911, which keeps the tires from spinning when you blast off at full speed; and full-throttle upshifting, using the rev limiter.

The Cobalt SS is a clear winner, the best of these five.